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Gellar holds a ‘Grudge'
By Jeff Korbelik / Lincoln Journal Star
Thursday, Oct 21, 2004 - 10:01:49 pm CDT

The horror genre has become so tired in Hollywood that filmmakers are remaking such classics as "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" and "Dawn of the Dead" in hopes of scaring movie-goers.

Now there seems to be a new trend developing.

Filmmakers are taking successful horror films from overseas — notably Japan — and remaking them for American audiences.

So far, it's been done with considerable success.

"The Ring" — 2002's scary story about the mysterious video that killed anyone who saw it — was a remake of the 1998 Japanese thriller "Ringu" and enjoyed tremendous success.

"The Grudge," starring Sarah Michelle Gellar of "Buffy, the Vampire Slayer" fame, is the latest Japanese remake, and I expect it, too, will have a good box office run.

Based on the Japanese hit "Ju-on: The Grudge" (2003), the American version was directed by Takashi Shimizu, who did the original.

The movie is a basic haunted-house story with a twist: Those leaving this house do not escape the evil. It follows them and exacts its terror with fatal consequences.

The film isn't linear. It begins with veteran actor Bill Pullman's character taking a header off a balcony. We don't learn until later, as part of the several flashbacks used to tell the story, who he is and why he did it.

Flashbacks can be frustrating, but in this case they are effective storytelling devices because they progress the story without giving too much away and ruining the payoff.

Although Gellar is the movie's drawing card, she actually doesn't score that much screen time. She is a cog in the story, with her character being used to tie events together.

She plays an exchange student in Tokyo who volunteers as a caregiver for class credit.

She finds herself in the midst of a terrifying chain of horror when she accepts an assignment at a house she later learns is cursed.

Gellar isn't new to the genre, having played a victim in "I Know What You Did Last Summer" (1997). But she is most known for kicking demon butts for seven years on her popular TV show.

So watching her play a victim again is hard to get used to. You keep waiting for her take no prisoners and high kick the scary female visage haunting the house into oblivion.

Still, her years on the show did teach her how to build suspense, and "The Grudge" has plenty of it to keep the audience hooked until the last horrifying moment.

Most likely Gellar will be the reason for putting people in theater seats, but the story will keep them on the edge of their seats.

Reach Jeff Korbelik at 473-7213 or jkorbelik@journalstar.com.

The Grudge
***

Director: Takashi Shimizu
Stars: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jason Behr
Rated: PG-13
Now showing: East Park, Edgewood, Cinema
The Reel Story: Gellar is a volunteer caregiver who unknowingly ventures into a haunted house in Tokyo in this remake of a successful Japanese film.